Stephen Raymond

Stephen Raymond was born in Karachi, Pakistan. His father was Judge Edward Raymond.[1] His siblings included Archbishop Leonard Raymond of Nagpur and Judge Herman Raymond of the Sindh High Court. He was educated at St Patrick's High School, Karachi. He received his religious training at the Papal Seminary, Kandy, Sri Lanka and was ordained a priest of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi. In 1944 Raymond was appointed Assistant Parish Priest of St. Lawrence’s Parish.[2]

He later studied at Oxford University from where he received a Master of Arts degree. He also received a Master of Education degree from the University of Washington, USA.

He became the first Pakistani principal of his alma mater in 1950. The era of Fr. Raymond as principal from 1950 to 1974 is referred by old students as the 'golden era' of St. Patrick's. Fr. Raymond is credited with starting the Cambridge Building (1950), St. Patrick's College (1952), the Teachers' Training College (1969), the first School Auditorium (1972). The school also celebrated its Centenary in 1962 under his stewardship, with the President of Pakistan, Field Marshal Mohammad Ayub Khan as the Chief Guest.[3]

He was described by a long-serving teacher, Yolande Henderson, as “the most charismatic human being” she had ever known.[4] In a 2013 tribute to the late Bishop Anthony Theodore Lobo, Henderson eulogised Raymond calling him “ an educational visionary and leader.”[5]

Father Stephen Raymond died in the UK on January 28, 1999. A memorial meeting was held in Karachi on February 5, 1999. Justice Wajihuddin Ahmed, the Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court and alumnus of the school, paid glowing tribute to the late Principal.[6]

St. Patrick's High School was one of the few private educational institutes in Sindh or Punjab provinces that escaped nationalization in 1972 under former Pakistan prime minister Z.A. Bhutto.[7]

On May 6, 2011, The Old Patricians (former students of the school) presented the Father Stephen Raymond Gold Medal to the top student from the Commerce section at the closing ceremony of the 150th anniversary of the school.[8]

See also

Veteran Pakistani Roman Catholic Priests

References

  1. ↑ "Dawn September 5, 2004".
  2. ↑ Mascarenhas, Oswin (2011). The Origin and Evolution of St Lawrence's Parish, Karachi, Pakistan: The Garden Area with the Settlement of the Christian Community. (Kindle Location 1449). Kindle Edition.
  3. ↑ "147 years of St. Patrick's High School".
  4. ↑ Citizens Archive of Pakistan's Oral History Project on YouTube
  5. ↑ Christian Voice, March 10, 2013
  6. ↑ "Dawn 7 November 1999".
  7. ↑ "UCANews.com March 3, 1998".
  8. ↑ The Old Patricians website accessed 8 April 2012
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